Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Grange Co-Op garden helps feed the hungry Emergency Services Man found asleep in stolen car Medford School District considers gifted land for new school Deadly deer virus may be spreading Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency Services Man found asleep in stolen car Grants Pass man arrested on sex abuse charges Comic book strives to teach kids to be ready for earthquakes Medford library bathrooms vandalized multiple times Politics and Elections Cecil, Stricker to face off in mayor's race, again Commissioner Skundrick plans final four town hall meetings Medford eyes electronic sign visual pollution Medford council veterans plan exit Education Medford School District considers gifted land for new school Loan default rate threatens Umpqua student aid Logos art teacher recognized High-tech tools Eagle Point equips kindergartners with iPads Environment Deadly deer virus may be spreading Talent earns Bee City USA designation Those without senior water rights left high and dry Stressed but off life support Rogue watershed councils plan to merge State news Nation - World Obituaries Dr. William Lee Margaret A.Vinzant Death Notices Stuart Skeele Frank Raymond Nadeau Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Sports Latest Stories (No heading) Seahawks use big first half to rout Bears (No heading) Murphy ready for city, SOGC tournaments Ducks break camp, prep for game day Varsity 541 College Sports (No heading) Ducks break camp, prep for game day SOU football team has an eye in the sky Raiders open with two triumphs Mannion's understudies compete for No. 2 spot Pro Sports Seahawks use big first half to rout Bears (No heading) (No heading) Versatile Martin looks to earn 49ers roster spot Finally, game ends in Cubs' victory Community Sports Results / Standings Second season a success for Rogues Runners defend titles in Mt. Ashland Hill Climb Locals shine in Dwarf Car Nationals opener Mustangs rout Alaska in opener Business Latest Stories Soul Shine Yoga and Massage to open in downtown Medford Ashland's Paddington Station takes top national prize Blog: Daydreaming: Three Easy Steps Blog: It's back, back, back, back to school time Medford company joins Inc.Magazine's 5,000 fastest-growing list Real Estate News Median residential housing prices rise 10.7 percent, but may begin to level out People In Business People in business Transportation Agriculture Opinion Latest The summer of my discontent: An open letter to Bill Rauch Other Views: NCAA must maintain academic integrity Letters to the Editor, Aug. 22 Michael Gerson: In Iraq, this is no time to lead from behind Our View: Marijuana sales — a taxing problem Editorials Other Views: NCAA must maintain academic integrity Our View: Marijuana sales — a taxing problem Our View: Water law has outlived its purpose Our View: Karuks have a head start on casino plans Library keeps a close eye on (financial) books Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Aug. 22 Letters to the Editor, Aug. 21 Letters to the Editor, Aug. 20 Letters to the Editor, Aug. 19 Letters to the Editor, Aug. 18 Guest Opinions The summer of my discontent: An open letter to Bill Rauch The power of local philanthropy Who I am and why I want to serve on the City Council City council members should be paid Lifestyle Latest stories Down, but not out, at Cascade Lakes Relay Fishing Report: Friday, Aug. 22 Shoot Out! Dry grass leads to vehicle restrictions Get Out: Friday, Aug. 22 Food Community blog: Onion pickles can wait for home-canning lull Cooking outside the box Cold Cucumber Cream Soup With Tomato Salsa Summer Squash Pasta With Green Goddess Dressing Corn on the cob butter recipes Home and Garden Green Scene: Diagnosing common tomato troubles Lawn talk Tips for keeping backyard birds cool this summer Bath time for the birds: You can help them stay cool and clean Learn to pick produce at the peak of ripeness Health Community blog:Here�s How To Leave Despair For Resilience Health officials detect West Nile Virus in another Jackson County sample Community blog:Doing laundry... Healthy Aging: An udderly unlikely vacation find Community blog:The Unfriendly Skies Hiking Faith Religion briefs Community Blog: Is Peace Possible in the Middle East - Part three of four Religion briefs Community Blog: Is Peace Possible in the Middle East part 2 Religion briefs Milestones and Achievements Grange Co-Op garden helps feed the hungry Medford woman graduates with honors Century Club New Arrivals Wedding: Schulman-Nadolny Columnist for a Day Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Live Music in Local Clubs Brian Regan hands out the laughs at Britt Randall Theatre extends 'Godspell' American Idol Live! comes to the Britt Stage 'Pump Boys & Dinettes' opens at Camelot Theatre Theater Randall Theatre extends 'Godspell' 'Pump Boys & Dinettes' opens at Camelot Theatre Film festival kicks off annual 'Daedalus Project' Review: The joy of 'Godspell' is infectious Randall Theatre opens 'Godspell' Music Live Music in Local Clubs Jeff Addicott: A Rogue Valley Experience Guitar Circus with Peter Frampton and Buddy Guy Brian Regan hands out the laughs at Britt Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue at Britt Community Events Shady Cove Tie Days Swap Meet 'Prints From the Plateau' at the Rogue Gallery Nature Walks in Lithia Park ScienceWorks Hands-on Museum World of Wine celebrates local varietals Dining NW Raw Kelly's Crepes Basil & Berries India Palace Taco Riendo Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Get Up & Go: Saturday, Aug. 23 ... Forestry crews snuff human-caused fire outside Gold Hill ... ACCESS warns clients to check possibly contaminated nut butters ... Get Up & Go: Saturday, Aug. 23 ... Forestry crews snuff human-caused fire outside Gold Hill ... ACCESS warns clients to check possibly contaminated nut butters ... NFL PAT experiment: 8 missed extra points By The Associated Press MailTribune.com By The Associated Press Posted Aug. 20, 2014 @ 7:23 pm By The Associated Press Posted Aug. 20, 2014 @ 7:23 pm » Social News FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Reviews have been mixed around the league for the NFL’s experiment with longer kicks on extra points. Regardless, it appears there’s a future for them. Eight kicks from the longer distance — usually 33 yards — were missed during the first two weeks of the preseason. The 94.3 percent success rate (133 of 141) was below the regular-season rate (99.6 percent) from 2013 when the ball was snapped from the 2-yard line instead of the 15. Only five of 1,267 short kicks were missed in 2013. All of this summer’s misses came with the ball snapped from the 15. Snaps will move back to the 2 this week and for the regular season. NFL officiating director Dean Blandino says he believes longer PAT kicks are “in the league’s near future.” The results this preseason will be brought to the competition committee, and a proposal for change almost certainly will be presented to team owners at next March’s annual meetings. Blandino isn’t sure the 15-yard line will be the focal point of any change. As with any alterations to the game, coaches and players offered a variety of viewpoints. San Francisco’s veteran placekicker Phil Dawson didn’t get a chance to try a long extra point because the 49ers didn’t score any touchdowns in their first two exhibition games. He sees the positive and negative sides of a longer kick. “It could rear its head in a game where the kicker hasn’t been on the field in a while,” Dawson said. “It’s hard to stay loose and then all of a sudden there’s a sudden score, maybe a fumble recovery, kickoff return, interception return. You might not be super loose yet. It’s one thing to go out there and pop through a 20-yarder. You back up (another) 13-15 yards and you’re a little stiff, you could possibly run into some problems there.” On the other foot ... “Any rule change that’s designed to highlight what guys do well, I’m all for it,” Dawson added. “If that rule change is motivated by, ‘Man, our kickers are really good and we want to showcase what they do well,’ I’m all for it.” Jets kicker Nick Folk, who has never missed an extra point in his seven-year career, believes longer tries make the more accurate kickers even more valuable. But “I think most kickers want to keep it the same as it’s been.” So does Tom Coughlin. The Giants coach sees some inequity in moving extra point placements back. He rolled his eyes when asked to assess the experiment. “I didn’t think much of it when it was suggested,” Coughlin said. “There are some ways to change that part of it if the intent is to make it more exciting. I think that certainly would be one of them. “I think you have to be aware of the fact that it’s a 33-yard (kick) in November when the wind’s blowing and it’s snowing here and ... in Miami it’s 75 degrees. It’s a little different in different parts of the country.” Coughlin thought extra points would be more interesting if the ball was spotted at the 1-yard line. It might entice more teams to go for 2 points. This year, 16 2-point conversions have been tried in the preseason, with four successful. In 2013, nine were attempted in the first two weeks of the preseason, with four successful. Indianapolis’ Adam Vinatieri, who’s won four Super Bowls as one of the NFL’s best clutch kickers, made all three of his PATs this summer. He agrees with Coughlin that weather can be a factor “when conditions get crummier” and thinks longer kicks might lead to more 2-point attempts. “I think it could impact the outcome of games and you may see more teams go for 2 in those situations because they won’t want to try (essentially) a 33-yard field goal,” Vinatieri said. Denver’s Matt Prater, who owns the NFL record with a 64-yard field goal last season, noted that most of the eight misses were by backup kickers. But “now that some guys have missed some. I think they may do it” he added of moving back the extra points. Asked if kickers are being punished for how accurate they are, Prater then said: “No kidding. Why not: ‘The receivers are too good, they can’t wear gloves anymore.’” There are other, more drastic options that might excite the fans if not the coaches and kickers. Perhaps eliminating the kick altogether and requiring teams to go for a conversion with a play. Or, as Eagles coach Chip Kelly suggested: “I think they should narrow the goalposts if they want to make it a little bit (harder), but no one asked me.” By The Associated Press MailTribune.com By The Associated Press Posted Aug. 20, 2014 @ 7:23 pm » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. fantasy football Instant Fantasy Reaction for Brice Butler Aug. 23, 2014 at 12:27 am Instant Fantasy Reaction for Julian Edelman Aug. 22, 2014 at 11:29 pm Instant Fantasy Reaction for Allen Hurns Aug. 22, 2014 at 10:23 pm Instant Fantasy Reaction for Shane Vereen Aug. 22, 2014 at 9:52 pm Reggie Bush's Instant Fantasy Reaction Aug. 22, 2014 at 9:07 pm Instant Fantasy Reaction for MJD Aug. 22, 2014 at 8:33 pm calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501